When Col. Aldo Calvi got back to his hometown in New York state,
he told a reporter that since there is no alcohol in Iraq, one of the first things he wanted was
a bottle of the local ale. The company responded - with one bottle for each day
Col. Calvi had been in Iraq.

Every year since 1923, there has been a Christmas Tree at the
Capitol in Washington, D.C. In the lighting ceremony, the President throws the switch that turns on the lights.
This site has historic photos of Hoover, Roosevelt, Truman, Eisenhower, Kennedy,
and the other Presidents in the lighting ceremony.

There has also been a Christmas tree in the White House ever since
Benjamin Harrison in 1889.

Skidmore's father, John Barry, who served in the 101st Airborne during the 1960s, came to watch his son with his daughter and three other family members. Swallowing hard, Barry said how fortunate and privileged his son was to be able to carry the wreath.

A National Guard Company held a drawing to see who would go home
for the holidays. Spec. James Presnall drew a winning number, and a friend of his,
who has a wife and child back home, didn't. Presnall volunteered to stay so that his
friend could go.

On December 14, 2003, soldiers from the US Army's 4th Infantry
Division captured Saddam Hussein.

One of the 4th Infantry's WW II heroes was General
Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. He landed with the first wave at Normandy on June 6, 1944,
and won the Congressional Medal of Honor for his gallantry and bravery in battle.
He was 57 at the time.